Strand treatment



March 17, 1970 I R. K. STANLEY 3,500,519

I STRAND TREATMENT Filed April 1, 1968 TENS\ON CONTROL TENSION CONTROL II l DRAWING CR\MPING awavme P0136??? STA/VLF) A Trams/5K:

United States Patent 3,500,519 STRAND TREATMENT Robert K. Stanley,Media, Pa., assignor to Techuiservice Corporation, Kennett Square, Pa.,a corporation of Pennsylvania Continuation-impart of application Ser.No. 600,986, Dec. 12, 1966. This application Apr. 1, 1968, Ser.

Int. Cl. D02j 1/22 US. Cl. 28-71.3 8 Claims ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURETextile strands are fed into and are removed from a strand-drawing zoneand/or a strand-crimping zone through a tension-control step wherein thetension is controlled by passing the strand in essentially non-slippingcontact with two or more rolls rotating together and retarding the rollrotation by frictional contact with one thereof.

This application is a continuation-in-part of my copending application,Ser. No. 600,986, filed Dec. 12, 1966 now abandoned.

In supplying a textile strand to a drawing zone in which it is extendedto permanently increased length or to a crimping zone in which it isdistorted in configuration and thereby effectively shortened overall, orin withdrawing a drawn or crimped textile strand therefrom, productuniformity is favored by operating at uniform tension, which isdifiicult to obtain. Many types of tension control and controllingdevices are known, but they are either erratic or impositive in theiraction or complex and expensive to acquire or to maintain.

A primary object of the present invention is positive, precise, readilyadjustable control of strand tension in treatment of textile strands asby drawing or crimping.

Another object is improved quality of drawn textile strands and ofimproved draw-crimping of textile strands.

Other object of the present invention, together with means and methodsfor attaining the various objects, will be apparent from the descriptionherein and the accompanying diagrams.

FIG. 1 is a schematic indication of examples of use of the presentinvention in conjunction with strand drawing and strand crimping;

FIG. 2 is a front elevation of apparatus useful in practicing theinvention; and

FIG. 3 is a rear elevation of the same apparatus.

In general, the objects of the present invention are accomplished bypassing a textile strand in essentially nonslipping relationship with aplurality of rolls and thereby rotating the rolls, and retardingrotation of the rolls by application of an opposing frictional forcethereto. Specific means for doing so and for adjusting the frictionalforce so applied are described and illustrated.

FIG. 1 shows, in schematic form, textile strand 10 being unwound fromsupply package 11 and passing through guide 12 and through four steps orzones, numbered 13, 14, 15, and 16 and shown in block form, before beingwound up on windup package 18 rotated by surface contact with drive roll17, which may be of self-traversing type. The first and last of thenumbered steps or zones (i.e., 13 and 16) are labeled Tension Control,while the intermediate two (i.e., 14 and 15) are labeled Drawing andCrimping, respectively. Broken line 19 extending vertically between thesymbols for the last two indicate that the output from drawing step orzone 14 need not be to a crimping step or zone, and that the input tothe latter step or zone need not be from a drawing step or zone,although such a combination may be employed, and that 3,500,519 PatentedMar. 17, 1970 ice like Tension Control may be employed at suchlocation(s).

FIGS. 2 and 3 show in elevation, from the front and rear, respectively,specific apparatus for accomplishing strand tension control according tothis invention. First roll 21 on axle 21a and third roll 23 on axle 23aare both contiguous with minor cylindrical portion 22 of second roll 22,which is mounted on axle 22a parallel to the other two axles. The firstand third rolls do not touch one another. Strand 10 passes aboutslightly less than half of each of the first and third rolls and aboutthree-fourths of the minor portion of the second or intermediate roll,passing between the nip formed by each of the first and third rolls withthe latter. Belt or strap 32 extends about a quadrant of the majorportion of roll 22 from fixed location 31 at one end to stop 33 at theother end, upon which are supported weights 34, thereby biasing the beltor strap into frictional contact with the roll surface.

Strand 10 is pulled, as by the windup means shown in FIG. 1 (or by drawrolls, etc.) in essentially non-slipping contact with first roll 21,minor portion 22' of the second roll, and third roll 23, therebyrotating them in the directions indicated by the arrows. The majorportion of roll 22 rotates in slipping frictional contact with belt orstrap 32, which counters the positive rotation and thereby tensions thestrand. The tension can be increased by adding weights, and reduced bysubtracting weights, carried by the belt or strap. The relative sizes ofthe major, strandsupporting portion of roll 22 and minor belt-supportingportion 22 thereof may be changed for a like or other purpose, as bypress-fitting collars of various sizes thereon.

The resulting tension in the strand is essentially constant at a maximumvalue determined by the frictional contact just described, which tendsto smooth out preexisting tension irregularities in the strand. As thecontrol is passive, rather than active, it cannot superimpose additionaltension variations upon the strand. Adjustment is simplicity itself, andmaintenance is practically nil.

The advantages and benefits of the apparatus and process of thisinvention will be apparent to persons skilled in the arts ofstrand-drawing and strand-crimping. Such crimping may include anyart-recognized method of altering the configuration of a textile strandto impart bulk, crimp or texture thereto, regardless of the meansemployed to do so, whether blades, gears, jets, stutter-boxes, twistingheads, or temperature-differential (or other stressditferential)devices. Of special interest, as suggested above, is any method in whichthe drawing and crimping steps occur so closely related in time that thestrand may be said to have been draw-crimped. A preferred examplethereof in which the strand is stufier-crimped is set forth in mycopending patent application Ser. No. 302,758, filed July 31, 1963 andscheduled to issue as Patent No. 3,376,622.

If desired, in one embodiment of this invention, roll 23 may establishthe beginning of a drawing zone. As is customary in such zone, thestrand passes in essentially non-slipping contact with each of a firstset of rolls rotating at a given surface speed and with each of a secondset of rolls rotating at a second surface speed sufiiciently greaterthan the first to draw the strand to increased length. Instead of beingone of a first set of draw rolls, roll 23 may be located ahead of and berotated at substantially the same surface speed as the first rolls inthe d awing zone. Additionally, if desired, in an embodiment of theinvention, roll 22 may act to withdraw crimped strand from a crimpingzone or may receive the crimped strand from a roll that withdraws itfrom the crimping zone. In a preferred embodiment, tension control meansof the present invention are located both at the entrance to astrand-drawing zone and at the exit from a strand-crimping zone.

Although a preferred embodiment of the present invention has beendescribed and illustrated herein, modifications may be made therein, asby adding, combining, or

sub-dividing parts or steps. Moreover, viscous fluid-damping means or ahysteresis brake (deemed to be frictionally retarded within theterminology of this application) may be employed in place of belt orstrap 32. One or more of such modifications may be made while retainingall or some of the advantages and benefits of this invention, which isdefined in the following claims.

What is claimed is:

1. In strand-drawing apparatus including a first set of draw rollsrotatable at a given surface speed and a second set of draw rollsrotatable at a sufliciently greater speed to draw to increased length atextile strand passing thereover, strand-tensioning means located inadvance of the draw rolls and comprising a pair of rolls, a third rollforming a nip with each of the first two rolls, and means for applying africtional retarding force to the third roll to oppose rotation of allthree rolls by contact with strand moving thereover.

,2. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the means for applying thefrictional retarding force comprises a belt contiguous with the thirdroll and having one end free and supporting a weight for biasing thebelt into frictional contact with the roll.

3. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein the rolls in the strand-tensioningmeans are rotatable at substantially the same surface speed as the firstset of draw rolls.

4. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein the first set of draw rollscomprises at least one of the rolls in the strand-tencrimping means andthe withdrawal rolls and comprising a pair of rolls, a third rollforming a nip with each of the first two rolls, and means for applying africtional retarding force to the third roll to oppose rotation of allthree rolls by contact with strand passing thereover in essentionallynon-slipping contact therewith,

6. The apparatus of claim 5, wherein the rolls in the strand-tensioningmeans are rotatable at substantially the same surface speed as the setof withdrawing rolls.

7. The apparatus of claim 5, wherein the set of withdrawing rollscomprises at least one of the rolls in the strand-tensioning means.

8. The apparatus of claim 5, wherein the means for applying thefrictional retarding force comprises a belt contiguous with the thirdroll and having one end free and supporting a weight for biasing thebelt into frictional contact with the roll.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,289,232 7/1942 Babcock 2871.3X2,329,374 9/1943 Holden 242 151 2,499,888 3/1950 Taylor 2871.3X2,768,057 10/1956 Friederich 28-595 2,807,863 10/1957 Schenker 2871.3X2,846,752 8/1958 Lessig. 2,851,043 9/1958 Slovin 28-71.3X 2,988,7996/1961 Atwell. 3,145,947 8/1964 Stanley.

JAMES KEE CHI, Primary Examiner U.S. Cl. X.R. 281

